Navigating the Art of Giving and Receiving Feedback at Work

Abstract

Module 6 Discussion: The Value of Giving & Receiving Feedback Giving feedback to peers requires a lot of consciousness, empathy, and good communication. When giving a response, one needs to maintain a balance between being honest without hurting the feelings of others. In so doing, one needs to be sensitive and avoid being overly critical or too harsh as this may damage others self esteem. On the other hand, when giving a response, one needs to avoid bias by all means. Bias could dent the effectiveness of the feedback and do more harm than good. While giving my feedback I have always tried factor in these issues. However, since there are many communication styles, what may be effective for one may not be effective for the other so I have had flawed relationships where some think I was too harsh while in other cases, giving my opinion made others feel inferior. On the same, I have had my peers praise me for being honest and unbiased. Since feedback is a valuable tool for continued learning at the work place, there are different ways in which it can be effectively used for ongoing development which include: skill development in which feedback can be used to provide guidance on training programs and mentoring opportunities. Additionally, feedback at the workplace can be used for coaching and mentoring in which the top most personnel could use to their juniors with the aim of helping them gain insights and for professional developments.